Kingdom Hearts (series)
Kingdom Hearts is a series of action role-playing games developed and published by Square Enix (formerly Square). It is the result of a collaboration between Square and Disney Interactive Studios and is under the direction of Tetsuya Nomura, a longtime Square character designer. Kingdom Hearts is a crossover of various Disney settings based in a universe made specifically for the series. In addition, it has an all-star voice cast which includes many of the Disney characters' official voice actors, and well-known actors such as Haley Joel Osment, David Gallagher, and Hayden Panettiere. Characters from Square Enix's Final Fantasy series make appearances and interact with the player and the Disney characters. The series centers on the main character Sora's search for his friends and his encounters with Disney and Final Fantasy characters on their worlds. The series currently consists of seven games across multiple video game consoles, and future titles are planned. Most of the games in the series have been both critically acclaimed and commercially successful, though each title has seen varying levels of success. As of March 2011, the Kingdom Hearts series has sold over 17 million copies worldwide. A wide variety of related merchandise has been released along with the games, including soundtracks, figurines, companion books, novels, and manga series. Overview Common gameplay elements The Kingdom Hearts series games contain elements from both action and role-playing games. The games are driven by a linear progression to the next story event, usually told in the form of a cut scene, though there are numerous side quests available that provide bonus benefits to the characters. The player is primarily in control of the principal protagonist of the series, Sora. Sora is usually accompanied by Donald Duck and Goofy, who are non-playable characters that aid Sora in battle. In the first and third game, their behaviour could be altered to fit the player's needs. The games featured real-time combat that incorporates physical attacks, magic, and summons; though each game handled battles differently. Gummi Ships are another common theme in the series, though they are only featured in the first and third instalment. The Gummi Ships serve as the main mode of transportation between worlds in the games. The gameplay for the Gummi Ships sections is more akin to a rail shooter. Because it received negative criticism in the first game, it was improved in the third instalment. All three games also feature a journal which is accessible from the main menu. The journal keeps track of information regarding the story, characters, enemies, and locations. In the game the journal is kept by Jiminy Cricket, who was appointed by Queen Minnie as the royal chronicler. The games are influenced by their parent franchise, Final Fantasy, and carry its gameplay elements over into their own action-based, hack-and-slash system. Like many traditional role-playing games, Kingdom Hearts features an experience point system which determines character development. As enemies are defeated, the player gains experience which culminate in a "level-up", where the characters grow stronger and gain access to new abilities. The amount of experience is shared with all party members and each character grows stronger as experience is gained. Disney and Square Enix characters Kingdom Hearts features a mixture of familiar Disney and Square Enix characters, as well as several new characters designed and created by Nomura. Though the series features locations unique to the Kingdom Hearts franchise, worlds from Disney films are heavily explored. Sora must visit these worlds and interact with popular Disney characters to protect them from enemies. Often, Sora's actions in these worlds follow closely to the storylines featured in their accompanying Disney films. In dialogue, Donald Duck tells Sora not to interfere with the worlds too much, since it would cause problems. Moogles, small creatures from Final Fantasy, are another common element in the games. They provide the player with a synthesis shop in order to create items for use in the game. Story The first game Kingdom Hearts shows how Sora is separated from his friends Riku and Kair when their world, Destiny Islands, is invaded by creatures known as the Heartless. During the invasion, he obtains a special weapon known as a Keyblade. He soon arrives in another world, Traverse Town, where he meets Donald Duck and Goofy, two emissaries from Disney Castle sent by King Mickey to find the wielder of the Keyblade. The three band together and travel to different Disney-themed worlds, sealing the hearts of the worlds to prevent more Heartless invasions. Along the way, they encounter a group of Disney villains led by Maleficent, who are controlling the Heartless to capture maidens called the "Princesses of Heart", and use their power to open the door to Kingdom Hearts and rule over all the worlds. Though they eventually defeat Maleficent, the three discover that a man named Ansem has been using Maleficent and plans to attain eternal darkness by opening Kingdom Hearts himself. Sora, Donald, and Goofy defeat Ansem and seal the door to Kingdom Hearts with the help of Riku and King Mickey on the other side of the door. In Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, the three begin searching for Riku and King Mickey. They arrive at a fortress called Castle Oblivion, where they encounter members of a mysterious group called Organization XIII, which is made up of non-existent beings called the Nobodies. While in the castle, the three's memories are manipulated by a girl named Naminé who is being forced to do so by the Organization. After defeating the Organization members controlling the castle, the three are put to sleep for a year by Naminé to allow them to regain their memories, though they must lose the memories of their experience in Castle Oblivion. Meanwhile, Riku appears in the basement of the castle and begins traveling to the first floor with the aid of King Mickey. Riku fights both the Organization's members and the darkness in his heart, learning to accept his dual nature between light and darkness. Allying himself with DiZ Riku aids him in keeping Sora and Naminé safe until the former is awoken. However in Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days, a snag in the plan over the year forces Riku to capture Roxas, the thirteenth member of the Organization and Sora's Nobody created after Sora transformed himself into a Heartless, to reintegrate Roxas with Sora and enable Sora's reawakening. One year later in Kingdom Hearts II, Sora's group awakes from their sleep and resume their search for Riku and King Mickey, learning of the Nobodies and becoming re-familiarized with Organization XIII. Sora once again travels to many Disney-themed worlds and resolves the troubles caused by the Heartless and Nobodies. They eventually reunite with King Mickey, who reveals that the "Ansem" Sora defeated was actually a young man named Xehanort, a student of the real Ansem the Wise, while Xehanort's Nobody Xemnas is the leader of Organization XIII. The Organization's plan is also revealed—they seek the power of "Kingdom Hearts", the sum of all the hearts that Sora released by destroying the Heartless with his Keyblade, to regain their lost hearts. The three arrive at the headquarters of Organization XIII and team up with their friends. Ansem the Wise uses a device that dissipates some of Kingdom Hearts' power, but a system overload causes the device to self-destruct, engulfing Ansem. At the top of the Castle that Never Was, Sora and his friends battle Xemnas, who uses what remains of Kingdom Hearts to power his multiple forms. After Sora and Riku destroy Xemnas, the two are reunited with their friends at their home. Another year later, Sora, Riku and Kairi receive a message from King Mickey detailing his discovery—shown during the events of Kingdom Hearts coded— that Sora is destined to save three Keyblade wielders featured during the events of Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep, ten years before the original game—Terra due to his body was taken over by the rogue Keyblade Master Xehanort, becoming the incarnation of Xehanort that battled Sora as "Ansem" and Xemnas; Ventus due to his heart was damaged after defeating his evil doppelganger Vanitas (who used the X-Blade) and ended up within Sora's heart while his comatose body lies hidden within Castle Oblivion; and Aqua due to being trapped in the realm of darkness. King Mickey also discovers that the destruction of "Ansem" and Xemnas has led to the reconstruction of Master Xehanort. To combat the new threat Xehanort poses, Sora and Riku take an exam to attain the "Mark of Mastery" that will allow them to become Keyblade Masters themselves. During the test in Kingdom Hearts: Dream Drop Distance, Sora and Riku enter into the Realm of Sleep where they learn of Xehanort's true goal: Xehanort plans to create thirteen replicas of himself by placing a piece of his own heart in each "host", thus infecting the body's original heart and taking it over. Then, using these thirteen darknesses, he will create the true X-Blade once more by pitting them against the seven warriors of light in an ultimate battle. Titles } |- !Games !Release Date (Japan, original) !Release Date (USA, English adaptation) !Original platform !Chronological order |- |''Kingdom Hearts'' |3/28/2002 |9/17/2002 | |2nd part |- |''Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories'' |11/11/2004 (GBA) 3/29/2007 (PS2) |12/7/2004 (GBA) 12/2/2008 (PS2) | |3rd part |- |''Kingdom Hearts II'' |12/22/2005 |3/28/2006 | |5th part |- |''Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days'' |5/30/2009 |9/29/2009 | |4th part |- |''Kingdom Hearts coded'' |11/18/2008-1/28/2010 (DoCoMo) 10/7/2010 (DS) |1/11/2011 (DS) | |6th part |- |''Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep'' |1/9/2010 |9/7/2010 | |1st part |- |''Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance'' |3/29/2012 |7/31/2012 | |7th part |} The three main games in the series were released in chronological order, with each new installment following the events of the previous installment. The one exception is the V CAST mobile game, which was developed independently of Square Enix's games. Games Kingdom Hearts is the first game in the series, released in Japan on March 28, 2002 for PlayStation 2. Tetsuya Nomura served as game director, his first time in this position. Kingdom Hearts introduced the main characters of the series and established the plot's framework, involving hearts and dark beings known as the Heartless. It also established the role of Disney characters in the series, with character cameos from the Final Fantasy series. Kingdom Hearts was released in North America on September 17, 2002, and featured additional content that was not in the original Japanese version. The game was later re-released exclusively in Japan as Kingdom Hearts Final Mix on December 26, 2002. Final Mix includes the content from the North American release and additional enemies, cutscenes, and weapons. Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories is a direct sequel to the first game. It was released on the'' Game Boy Advance'' 'in Japan on November 11, 2004. ''Chain of Memories was touted as a bridge between the two PlayStation 2 titles, introducing and previewing plot elements that would be explored in the next game. The gameplay system is a departure from the original, employing card game mechanics in real time. Players construct decks out of cards that correspond to different actions in battle, such as attacking or using magic. It was remade into a PlayStation 2 game titled Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories, which contains polygon graphics instead of the sprites used in the original game. The remake was released in Japan as a second disc packaged with ''Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix on March 29, 2007, and in North America as a standalone title on December 2, 2008.'' ''Kingdom Hearts II'' takes place one year after the events of Chain of Memories. It was released for the ''PlayStation 2'' in Japan on December 22, 2005. The game further explores the "heart" concept by involving a new group of enemies, the Nobodies, which are the cast-off shells of the Heartless. The gameplay is similar to that of the first Kingdom Hearts game, with the addition of the Reaction Command, which performs context-sensitive actions in battle. Kingdom Hearts II was revised into Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix, which contains more material than the original release, such as additional cutscenes and bosses. Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix was released with Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories in a collection titled Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix+, which was released in Japan on March 29, 2007. ''Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days'' was released for the ''Nintendo DS'' in Japan on May 30, 2009. It is primarily set between Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II, focusing on Roxas' time in Organization XIII and his motives for leaving. It is the first game in the series to feature '''cooperative gameplay in addition to the traditional use of AI-controlled partners. Gameplay is mission-based with optional objectives that yield additional rewards. The game also has a unique panel system which governs character improvement, special abilities, and equipped weapons. Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep is a prequel to the series, released for the PlayStation Portable in Japan on January 9, 2010, and in North America on September 7, 2010 with additional content. The game is set ten years before the events of the first ''Kingdom Hearts game, revealing the origins of the villain, Xehanort. It consists of four scenarios, three of which focus on one of the game's three protagonists—Terra, Ventus, and Aqua—and the fourth unlocked upon completion of the first three. The game was re-released exclusively in Japan under the title Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Final Mix on January 20, 2011 with the content from the English versions as well as new features, such as an additional fifth scenario. ''Kingdom Hearts coded is an episodic mobile phone game that picks up directly after Kingdom Hearts II. The "preinstall" episode was released exclusively in Japan on November 18, 2008 and eight episodes were released between June 3, 2009 and January 28, 2010. The game was remade for the Nintendo DS as ''Kingdom Hearts Re:coded, and features updated gameplay combining that of two later titles in the series, 358/2 Days and Birth by Sleep. Unlike the original version, Re:coded was released internationally: October 7, 2010 in Japan; January 11, 2011 in North America; and January 14, 2011 in Europe. ''Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance was released on March 29, 2012 in Japan for the Nintendo 3DS. The game focuses on Sora and Riku Mark of Mastery exam under Yen Sid in anticipation of Master Xehanort's return and their subsequent conflicts with enemies from their past. In addition to similar systems inherited from Birth by Sleep, this game features "Dream Eaters" which serve as both enemies and allies. Players may collect and breed friendly Dream Eaters and train them to become more powerful. The English edition comes out on July 20, 2012 in the United Kingdom and on July 31, 2012 in the United States. Future Kingdom Hearts III: In an interview with Tetsuya Nomura, he stated that his team is currently too busy with other projects such as Final Fantasy Versus XIII to work on Kingdom Hearts III. He also stated that his team was doing research concerning the high-definition graphics of the game, and depending on the technical requirements of the next generation consoles, Kingdom Hearts III may see a release on existing platforms. Story-wise, Nomura has revealed that it will pick up directly after the events of Dream Drop Distance and serve as the final chapter of the "Xehanort Saga", although it will not be the final game of the series overall. Following Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance, Nomura explained that Square would announce a new Kingdom Hearts game with the staff currently working on it. Moreover, Nomura denied rumors that that there would be a sequel to Birth by Sleep or an updated version of Dream Drop Distance. Regarding consoles, the staff was invited to work in a Kingdom Hearts for the PlayStation Vita. Although finding the handheld console's quality outstanding, Nomura stated that the series should go back to a main console. Additionally, by playing the ending of Dream Drop Distance, the player would be able to get hint regarding the next title. Besides developing the next game, Nomura has also shown a desire to make a high-definition version. Audio Musical score The music for the video game series was primarily composed by Yoko Shimomura. Kaoru Wada works as the arranger for orchestral music in the Kingdom Hearts series, including orchestral renditions of the main vocal themes and the ending themes. The orchestral music was performed by the New Japan Philharmonic Orchestra and the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra. Soundtracks were released for the first and third instalments following the release of their respective games. A compilation soundtrack was later released that included soundtracks for the entire series, including reworked tracks for the re-released Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories. While the themes for some of the Disney-based worlds are taken directly from their Disney film counterparts, most of them are given entirely original musical scores. In addition to each world having unique background music, each is given its own battle theme rather than having a common theme to cover all fights. Several of the Disney villains get themes based on the film from which they originated, and the final boss of each game has several themes played in the various phases of those fights. The fights with Sephiroth feature Nobuo Uematsu's One-Winged Angel from Final Fantasy VII. The main theme songs for the Kingdom Hearts games were written and performed by Japanese pop star, Utada Hikaru. The two main themes are Hikari, from Kingdom Hearts and Chain of Memories, and Passion, from Kingdom Hearts II. Each song had an English counterpart, Simple and Clean and Sanctuary respectively, for the North American and European releases. Utada was the only singer Tetsuya Nomura had in mind for the first Kingdom Hearts theme song. This marked the first time Utada had produced a song for a video game. Both theme songs reached notable popularity in Japan. On weekly Oricon charts, Hikari hit #1 in 2002 and Passion hit #4 in 2005. Voice cast The Kingdom Hearts games featured well-known voice actors for both the Japanese and English versions. The Japanese version featured Miyu Irino as Sora, Risa Uchida as Kairi, and Mamoru Miyano as Riku. The third game introduced Kōki Uchiyama as Roxas, Iku Nakahara as Naminé, and Genzō Wakayama as DiZ. Other notable voice actors included Kōichi Yamadera, Hideo Ishikawa, Maaya Sakamoto, Takahiro Sakurai, Akio Ōtsuka, Takashi Aoyagi, Yū Shimaka and Shinichirō Miki. The English release of the Kingdom Hearts games featured an all-star voice cast which included many of the Disney characters' original voice actors. Wayne Allwine (and later Bret Iwan due to Allwine's death), Tony Anselmo, and Bill Farmer voiced Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy. Several high profile actors provided the voice acting of the main characters. The first game featured Haley Joel Osment as Sora, David Gallagher as Riku, and Hayden Panettiere as Kairi. The third game saw the return of the main character voice actors and added Jesse McCartney as Roxas, Brittany Snow as Naminé, and Christopher Lee as DiZ. Other notable actors included, Steve Burton, Mandy Moore, David Boreanaz, Ming-Na, and James Woods, and most recently, Jason Dohring, Willa Holland, Leonard Nimoy, and Mark Hamill. Development History The first Kingdom Hearts began development in February 2000. It was directed by Tetsuya Nomura and produced by Shinji Hashimoto, who had conceived the idea when he met with a Disney executive in an elevator. Square and Disney had previously worked in the same building in Japan.> While Nomura had done previous work in the Final Fantasy series as monster designer and graphic director, he did not gain widespread recognition until he was the lead character designer for Final Fantasy VII. Kingdom Hearts marked his transition into a directional position. He also served as the game's character designer. The scenarios were provided by Kazushige Nojima who was a scenario writer for Square from Final Fantasy VII until he left Square Enix in 2003. Originally the development focused on the gameplay with a simple story to appeal to Disney's target age range. After Kingdom Hearts executive producer Hironobu Sakaguchi told Nomura that the game would be a failure if it did not aim for the same level as the Final Fantasy series, he began to develop the story further. Nomura placed an unlockable trailer in Kingdom Hearts in hopes that fans would want a sequel. He was unsure if fans would want a sequel and felt that if they did not, then it would be best to leave certain events in the first game unexplained. After Kingdom Hearts Final Mix was completed, plans for Kingdom Hearts II began. Nomura has stated that there were several obstacles to clear before development could begin on a sequel. One was the development team's desire to showcase Mickey Mouse more; Nomura had planned for the sequel to take place a year after the first and originally intended for the events of that year to be left unexplained. To bridge the gap between the two games, Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories was developed.> Nomura was hesitant about releasing a game on the Game Boy Advance because he felt that the 3D graphics of the original game would not translate well into 2D. Nomura changed his position after hearing that children wanted to play Kingdom Hearts on the GBA. Creation and design Director Tetsuya Nomura also worked as the character designer of the games. Though Disney gave Nomura freedom in the characters and worlds used for the games, he and his staff tried to stay within the established roles of characters and boundaries of the worlds. Nomura has stated that though many of the Disney characters are not normally dark and serious, there were not many challenges making them so for the story, and despite this, their personalities shine because they maintain their own characteristics. When deciding which worlds to include in the game, the development staff tried to take into account worlds with Disney characters that would be interesting and made an effort to minimize any overlap in the overall look and feel of each world. The inclusion of specific Final Fantasy characters was based on the opinions of both fans and staff.Another criteria for inclusion was whether the staff felt the characters would fit into the storyline and in the Kingdom Hearts universe. Initially, Nomura was hesitant to use characters he did not design, because he was unfamiliar with the background work of those characters. For Kingdom Hearts II, he changed his mind after receiving pressure from his staff. Throughout the development of the games, Nomura has often left certain events and connections between characters unexplained until the release of future games. Nomura did this because he feels that games should have room for fans to speculate and use their imagination. He stated that with speculation, even though a game gets old, people can still be happy with it. Promotion The first Kingdom Hearts was announced at E3 in May 2001. Initial details were that it would be a collaboration between Square and Disney Interactive and would feature worlds developed by both companies and Disney characters. New characters were designed by Nomura and include Sora, Riku, Kairi, and the Heartless. On May 14, 2002, a press release announced a list of the English voice actors. The list included Haley Joel Osment, David Gallagher, and Hayden Panettiere as the three new characters introduced in the game. It was also announced that many of the Disney characters would be voiced by their original voice actors from their respective Disney films. An unlockable trailer in the first Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts Final Mix hinted at the possibility of a sequel. Rumors for a sequel on the PlayStation 2 were spurred in Japan when the Japanese video game site, Quiter, stated that "an internal (and anonymous source) at Square Japan" confirmed that development of Kingdom Hearts II had begun. It was not until Kingdom Hearts II was announced, along with Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, at the Tokyo Game Show in September 2003 that rumors were confirmed. Initial details were that it would take place some time after Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, which takes place directly after the first game. Other details included the return of Sora, Donald, and Goofy, as well as new costumes. At the 2004 Square Enix E3 Press conference, the producer, Shinji Hashimoto, stated that many mysteries of the first game would be answered. To help market the games, websites were set up for each game and demos were on display at gaming events. Each game in the main series were also re-released in Japan with additional content and served as canonical updates to the series. The additional content foreshadowed later plot elements in the series. The re-releases of the main series games had the term "Final Mix" added after the title, while Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories was re-released as Kingdom Hearts Re:Chain of Memories and released on the PlayStation 2 with 3D graphics, voice overs during some cutscenes, as well as additional game content. Merchandise There are multiple versions of each of the main Kingdom Hearts games. They each had a release in Japan, North America, and the PAL region. The were also re-released in Japan with new content. Both Square and Disney also released numerous types of merchandise before and after the release of the game. Merchandise ranged from toys and figurines to clothing items and jewelry. Two of the games, Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II, had a soundtrack released around the same time as the video games. These were followed by a nine CD complete set which featured both soundtracks and unreleased tracks. Kingdom Hearts has also been published as a trading card game by the Tomy corporation of Japan. An English version of the game was released in November 2007 by Fantasy Flight Games. The video games have also been adapted into a manga and novel series. Like the Final Fantasy games, a series of Ultimania books were also released in Japan for the three main games. There are six books which include game walkthroughs, interviews, and extra information from the developers. The books include, Kingdom Hearts Ultimania, Kingdom Hearts Ultimania Revised Edition, Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories Ultimania, Kingdom Hearts Series Ultimania α ~Introduction of Kingdom Hearts II~, Kingdom Hearts II Ultimania, and Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix+ Ultimania. Released along with Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix+ was Kingdom Hearts -Another Report-, a hardback book which includes game information, visuals by Shiro Amano, and a director interview. In North America, Brady Games released strategy guides for each game. For Kingdom Hearts II, they released two versions, a standard version and a limited edition version. The limited edition was available in four different covers and included a copy of Jiminy's Journal along with 400 stickers. Printed adaptations A manga based on the Kingdom Hearts storyline has been released in Japan and the United States. The story and art are done by Shiro Amano, who is also known for his manga adaptation of the Legend of Mana video game. The story follows the events that took place in the video games with differences to account for the loss of interactivity a video game provides. The manga was originally serialized in Japan by Square Enix's Monthly Shonen Gangan and eventually released in tankōbons. The first tankōbon was released in Japan in October 2003. The manga was released in the USA by Tokyopop two years later in October 2005. It was divided up into three manga series based on Kingdom Hearts, Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, and Kingdom Hearts II. The first series, Kingdom Hearts, was broken up into four volumes, while the second series, Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories, was broken up into two volumes. The third series, Kingdom Hearts II, is currently still being serialized. The first volume was released in Japan in December 2006 and was released in the USA on July 3, 2007. A novel series has also been released. It is written by Tomoco Kanemaki and illustrated by Shiro Amano. Like the manga series, it is divided up into separate series based on the games. Kingdom Hearts is divided up into two volumes; "The First Door" and "Darkness Within". They are scheduled to be released in the USA in June 2008. Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories has currently been released only in Japan and is divided into three volumes. Kingdom Hearts II has also been released only in Japan and is divided into four volumes; "Roxas - Seven Days", "The Destruction of Hollow Bastion", "Tears of Nobody", and "Anthem-Meet Again/Axel Last Stand". Reception The Kingdom Hearts series has been critically and commercially successful, though each installment has seen different levels of success. By December 2005, the Kingdom Hearts series had shipped more than 8.5 million copies worldwide. As of September 2007, the series has shipped over eleven million copies worldwide, with 2.0 million copies in PAL regions, 3.0 million copies in Japan, and 5.6 million copies in North America. The three main games in the series all met with positive sales at the time of their releases. During the first two months of Kingdom Hearts's North American release, it was one of the top three highest-selling video games. Chain of Memories sold 104,000 units in 48 hours in Japan, a record for a Game Boy Advance title at the time. Its positive debut sales placed it in the top spot of sales charts in Japan. In the first month of its North American release, it was ranked 1st on GameSpot's ChartSpot for portable systems and 6th for all consoles. Within a week of Kingdom Hearts II's Japanese release, it shipped 1 million copies, selling almost 730,000 copies. By the end of March 2006, the NPD Group reported that Kingdom Hearts II was the highest-selling console game in North America, with 614,000 copies. In the month after its release in North America, Kingdom Hearts II sold an estimated 1 million copies. The games have also received high ratings and positive comments from reviewers. The three main games have scored a 36 out of 40 or higher from the Japanese game magazine Famitsu, known for its extremely harsh grading. All four games have been praised for their visuals. The games have also won several awards. GameSpot commented that the concept of mixing the serious elements of Final Fantasy with the lighter elements of Disney seemed impossible, but was pulled off quite well. Because of that they awarded Kingdom Hearts "Best Crossover Since Capcom vs. SNK" in their 2002 Best and Worst of the Year awards. IGN named Kingdom Hearts "Best Art Style/Direction" in their 2003 list of "Best Looking Games on PS2". G4 awarded it "Best Story" at their 2003 G-Phoria awards show. The manga series has also been well received. Several of the manga volumes were listed on USA Today's "Top 150 best sellers". The highest ranked volume was Kingdom Hearts volume 4 at #73. Every volume listed stayed on the list for at least two weeks; Kingdom Hearts volume 4 stayed the longest at four weeks. Copyright Information It has been long debated over the game series ownership. Due to the fact the game is developed by well known and renowned game developers Square Enix, it also contains iconic characters music and worlds created by Disney. The Kingdom Hearts franchise, while yes is made by Square Enix, are copyright to Disney Interactive Studios. To prove this one must only check the back of every single KH Game box and it will say the following: *"Copyright Disney Interactive Studios. Developed by Square Enix." Square Enix only takes credit for making the games, not owning them. Following this will be a series of copyright laws containing SE's Ownership of the FF Characters and FF Music used in the games. Square Enix does not own the Kingdom Hearts games, nor its original characters. They take credit for making the games, and owning the Final Fantasy Characters/Music used in said games. All of the Kingdom Hearts Original Characters are copyright to Disney, not Square Enix. They are Disney characters, just ones made by SE. Also while Disney owns the rights for Kingdom Hearts they didn't make the games themselves. Artwork BBS-Boxartwork.jpg|Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep Box Artwork BirthBySleep-Artwork.jpg|Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep 002 001.jpg|Kingdom Hearts 004.jpg|Kingdom Hearts 002 005.jpg|Kingdom Hearts 003 006.jpg|Kingdom Hearts 004 009.jpg|Kingdom Hearts 006 010.jpg|Kingdom Hearts 007 Dawn.jpg|Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories Christmas Sora wallpaper-1000×800.jpg|Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories 002 DaysWall.png|Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days RoxasUltimania.png|Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days 002 DaysArt.png|Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days 003 Kh2uo02.jpg|Kingdom Hearts II Box Artwork Exposed.jpg|Kingdom Hearts II 002 604772-sora_roxas_popsicle_super.jpg|Kingdom Hearts II 003 Cast.png|Kingdom Hearts II 004 Kh2uo03.jpg|Kingdom Hearts II 005 Kh2uo04.jpg|Kingdom Hearts II 006 Twilight.jpg|Kingdom Hearts II 007 CodedChar.png|Kingdom Hearts coded _-Kingdom-Hearts-Re-Coded-DS-_.jpg|Kingdom Hearts Re:coded kingdom_hearts_3ds_conceptart_rx6GX.jpg|Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance Box Artwork KH 2012 December Wallpaper.jpg|December 2012 Holiday desktop wallpaper/calendar External links *Official website *Official website (JP) *[http://www.disney.co.jp/interactive/kingdom/ Disney's Kingdom Hearts site] (JP) *[http://kingdomhearts.wikia.com Kingdom Hearts Wikia] *KHWiki References es:Saga de Kingdom Hearts Kingdom Hearts (series) Category:Games Category:Disney